Bereavement Leave at Work¶

The UK has almost no statutory bereavement leave. The single exception is Jack's Law, which gives employed parents 2 weeks' paid leave when a child under 18 dies. For every other death — a parent, a spouse, a sibling, an adult child, a friend — there is no statutory right to paid time off in UK employment law. The realistic position depends on the contract, the employer's discretionary policy, the residual right to "time off for dependants," and what can be agreed in conversation with a manager.

This guide covers all four routes and how to combine them.

If you can only do one thing today: Read the contract or staff handbook for any "bereavement leave," "compassionate leave," or "compassionate absence" policy before you make a request. Most UK employers offer 3 to 5 days' paid leave for the death of an immediate relative as a discretionary benefit, and the policy will state the eligibility and process. If the policy exists, the request is straightforward; if it doesn't, the request is to your manager's discretion and to the time-off-for-dependants statutory right covered below. [source: gov-uk/acas-time-off-for-bereavement-2026-04-30.html]

Jack's Law: the only statutory paid bereavement leave¶

Jack's Law — formally the Parental Bereavement (Leave and Pay) Act 2018 — gives employees the right to 2 weeks' paid leave when a child under 18 dies, or when a stillbirth occurs at 24 weeks of pregnancy or later. It applies to biological, adoptive, and intended parents in surrogacy arrangements, plus people in a parental relationship with the child (typically partners of the parent who have been caring for the child for at least 4 weeks). [source: gov-uk/parental-bereavement-pay-leave-2026-04-30.html]

Key features:

2 weeks of paid leave, taken as one continuous block or as two separate 1-week blocks.
Up to 56 weeks (just over 12 months) after the death to take the leave — exceptional flexibility in UK statutory leave.
Statutory Parental Bereavement Pay at £187.18 per week (April 2025 rate) or 90% of average weekly earnings if lower. Many employers top up to full pay; this is goodwill, not law.
No minimum service for the leave itself; 26 weeks of continuous service for SPBP entitlement specifically. Employees with less service still get the time off, just unpaid.
Notification to the employer is in writing (or the contract's specified method). Death certificate evidence may be requested after the first 8 weeks; not required immediately. [source: gov-uk/parental-bereavement-pay-leave-2026-04-30.html]

Jack's Law applies UK-wide. Self-employed parents are not covered. Refusal of the leave is automatic unfair dismissal grounds. [source: gov-uk/parental-bereavement-pay-leave-2026-04-30.html]

Time off for dependants: the statutory safety net¶

The Employment Rights Act 1996 (Section 57A) gives every employee the right to a reasonable amount of unpaid time off to deal with an emergency involving a dependant. The dependant definition covers a spouse, civil partner, child, parent, or someone living in the household (other than as a tenant or lodger). It does not cover adult siblings, in-laws, friends, or non-resident relatives, regardless of how close the relationship was. [source: gov-uk/time-off-for-dependants-2026-04-30.html]

Bereavement is treated as a qualifying emergency where the dependant has died. The employee has the right to take time off to:

Make funeral arrangements.
Attend the funeral.
Deal with the immediate practical aftermath.

The time is unpaid and is for immediate practical matters — typically 1 to 2 days, sometimes 3 to 5 where the practical demands are heavy. It is not a right to weeks of leave to grieve; the courts have consistently held that "reasonable" in this context is short. The right is in addition to any contractual leave the employer offers; it cannot be deducted from holiday allowance. [source: gov-uk/time-off-for-dependants-2026-04-30.html]

Notification is "as soon as reasonably practicable" — a phone call to the manager on the day, with confirmation in writing afterwards, is enough. The employer cannot refuse the time off but can ask for an explanation of the emergency and the expected duration. [source: gov-uk/time-off-for-dependants-2026-04-30.html]

For deaths of relatives outside the dependant definition (an adult child living independently, a brother, a close friend), this right does not apply. The realistic route is the contractual policy or a discretionary arrangement with the employer.

Discretionary employer bereavement policies¶

Most UK employers offer some form of paid bereavement leave under their own policies, even though no statutory right requires it. Typical patterns:

3 to 5 days' paid leave for the death of an immediate relative — partner, parent, child, sibling. [source: gov-uk/acas-time-off-for-bereavement-2026-04-30.html]
1 to 2 days' paid leave for the death of a more distant relative — grandparent, in-law, aunt or uncle. [source: gov-uk/acas-time-off-for-bereavement-2026-04-30.html]
Discretionary unpaid leave for the death of a friend or non-relative, granted on a case-by-case basis.

Larger employers, public-sector employers, and those with active HR functions tend to be more generous; the most generous policies offer 2 weeks for an immediate relative. Smaller employers without written policies are often more flexible in practice — a request handled informally with the owner-manager rather than through HR. [source: gov-uk/acas-time-off-for-bereavement-2026-04-30.html]

The contract or staff handbook should set out the policy. Where it does not, the employer is under no obligation to offer paid leave, but most will agree to something reasonable when asked. The conversation is usually easier when the request is specific (the funeral is on Tuesday, I need that day plus the day before) rather than open-ended.

Statutory Sick Pay where grief becomes incapacity¶

Where the bereavement is severe enough to make the employee unable to work — typically the early weeks after a sudden or traumatic death, or where pre-existing mental-health conditions are aggravated — the employee is entitled to Statutory Sick Pay from day 4 of absence under the standard SSP rules. SSP is currently £118.75 per week (April 2025 rate) for up to 28 weeks. [source: gov-uk/statutory-sick-pay-2026-04-30.html]

This is not "bereavement leave" — it is sickness absence with the bereavement as the underlying cause. The employee usually self-certifies for the first 7 days and provides a fit note from a GP for any longer period. Most GPs will issue a fit note for grief-related absence without difficulty. [source: gov-uk/statutory-sick-pay-2026-04-30.html]

Many employers operate occupational sick pay schemes that top SSP up to full pay or near-full pay for a defined period. The contract or staff handbook sets out the entitlement. Combining a few days of bereavement leave with a period of sickness absence is a normal pattern; the two are separate entitlements and can be used in sequence.

How to make a request¶

The mechanics are straightforward. In writing, to the manager (with HR copied where the employer has one):

The relationship to the deceased — partner, parent, child, sibling, etc.
The date of death.
The dates of leave being requested, with the reason (funeral attendance, arrangements, immediate practical matters).
A reference to the relevant policy where one exists, or to Jack's Law for parental bereavement of an under-18 child.
An indication of when the employee will return to work.

A workable template:

Dear [manager],

I am writing to request 5 days of compassionate leave from [date] to [date] following the death of my mother on [date]. The funeral will be held on [date]; I will return to work on [date]. (Reference: ACAS bereavement guidance.) [source: gov-uk/acas-time-off-for-bereavement-2026-04-30.html]

I will be available by phone for urgent matters during this period. Could you confirm cover arrangements for [specific responsibilities] in my absence.

Thank you.

Employers in practice almost always approve reasonable requests for the death of an immediate relative without resistance. Where the relationship is more distant or the request is for longer than the policy allows, a brief explanation of the practical reasons (the executor needs to be in the country to attend probate hearings, the deceased lived alone and the property needs clearing) usually carries the request.

What to do if the employer refuses¶

For deaths covered by Jack's Law, refusal is automatic unfair dismissal grounds and the employee should take immediate advice from an employment solicitor or trade union. The statutory right is unambiguous and the remedy is well-established. [source: gov-uk/parental-bereavement-pay-leave-2026-04-30.html]

For deaths covered by the time-off-for-dependants right, refusal is a breach of the Employment Rights Act 1996. The employee can complain to an Employment Tribunal within 3 months of the refusal; the remedy is a declaration plus modest compensation. [source: gov-uk/time-off-for-dependants-2026-04-30.html]

For other deaths where no statutory right applies and the employer is exercising discretion under their policy or in its absence, refusal is lawful but unusual. The escalation route is HR, then the employer's grievance procedure, then ACAS conciliation. Most refusals reflect a manager's misunderstanding of the policy rather than the employer's considered position; raising it formally usually resolves it. ACAS provides free advice on 0300 123 1100. [source: gov-uk/acas-time-off-for-bereavement-2026-04-30.html]

Annual leave and combining entitlements¶

Where the employer's bereavement leave is shorter than the employee needs, annual leave can be added on top. Holiday is a contractual entitlement and can be taken (subject to the employer's notice requirements) without justification. Most employees use a few days of annual leave to extend bereavement leave by a week or two — particularly to handle the funeral, executor duties, and the early stages of estate administration.

Where the employee is taking the time as a mix of bereavement leave + annual leave + sickness absence, the order usually matters for pay: the bereavement leave is taken first (full pay under most policies), annual leave next (full pay), and sickness absence last (SSP or occupational sick pay). The employee notifies the employer of each transition.

For employees with executor duties — appointment in the deceased's will, responsibility for the probate process — the time commitment can run to 6 to 12 months of intermittent demands (probate court hearings, estate-agent meetings to sell property, banking and tax interactions). A flexible-working request to the employer, asking for 1 day a week home-working or a temporarily reduced schedule, is sometimes accepted on bereavement-related grounds even where bereavement leave itself has run out.

Self-employed and gig economy¶

The UK statutory framework above applies only to employees. Self-employed people, sole traders, and "workers" in the limited statutory sense do not have access to:

Jack's Law paid leave.
Time off for dependants.
Statutory Sick Pay.

A self-employed person who needs to stop work for a bereavement loses income for the period they don't work, and pays no national-insurance contributions for the period either. The state-side support that does apply is Bereavement Support Payment in cases where the deceased was a spouse or civil partner (see Stopping benefits after a death) and Universal Credit for those whose income falls below the qualifying threshold. Neither is bereavement leave; both are income-replacement at a much lower level.

For limited-company directors who are sole employees of their own company, the company can in principle pay bereavement leave under its own policy. In practice the director is choosing to pay themselves; the option exists but the company's cash flow has to bear the cost.

Scotland and Northern Ireland¶

UK employment law applies on the same terms across all four nations. Jack's Law, the time-off-for-dependants right, and SSP are identical in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and England. The advice in this guide applies UK-wide. The Employment Tribunal system has separate procedural rules in Scotland (Scottish ETs) and Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland Industrial Tribunals) but reaches the same substantive conclusions.

What this guide doesn't cover¶

This guide is about the employee's right to time off after a death. It does not cover the broader bereavement-related state benefits — Bereavement Support Payment and the older predecessor benefits — or the position of the deceased's own employment contracts (which terminate on death; final salary, accrued holiday pay, and any death-in-service benefits are paid into the estate).

It also does not cover bereavement-related absences for self-employed people in detail, beyond noting that the statutory rights here do not apply.

If you're struggling, you don't have to do this alone. Samaritans (116 123, 24/7) | Cruse Bereavement Care (0808 808 1677) | Mind (0300 123 3393) | ACAS (0300 123 1100, free employment-rights advice)

Next: When someone dies in a care home

Last verified: 30 April 2026 against gov.uk/parental-bereavement-pay-leave, gov.uk/time-off-for-dependants, and gov.uk/statutory-sick-pay.